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Working'll kill ya

Actually, I like my new job. So far.

We haven't done any work yet, but anyway …

We're in training. Eight months of training! The Princess elbows her husband and says, "Yeah, honey, they get training! Imagine that." She has started a job with no training whatsoever and is hating it. The husband says, "You know how to be a project manager." The problem is no one will give her any information about these projects.

I, on the other hand, am being swamped with information. I am having to trust The System. They will give me all the information I need. The information will be sufficient. I will retain enough of it to do my job. I will not crash and burn.

We'll all just keep our fingers crossed, won't we?

What else can I say without betraying too much?

My training group is fun. A bunch of people are fresh out of college. They are so cute! They don't know how to sign up for health benefits and are going to consult their moms. A few of us are older. We are totally down with the benefits because we have been self-employed and this is our big fantasy. Health insurance! That we hardly have to pay for! And paid days off. Baby, we are getting Columbus Day! Off! But yet we still get paid! It's like a dream.

This training system is like being in school again. While there is no formal homework, I feel the need to study and review the plethora of information outside the office. Some of it is starting to make sense.

I have three Smart Cards to get me to work (commuter pass), into the building (key card), and into the office (employee badge). We have noticed that the badges must be scanned to get into the office each time we step out into the hallway to use the bathroom. I feel the need to point this out to the younger, less paranoid ones. "Watch that toilet time, people."

I have discovered that a large part of this job involves denying people Things They Want and, in fact, involves saying "No!" with toddler-like frequency. I find this strangely empowering. I notice that life has yet to squash the urge to be compliant out of the younger ones, who have yet to re-enter the "No!" stage, having only left it about fifteen years ago. I find myself at the advantage. Heh.

Weekend trips home: Getting on that train Sunday evening is not easy.